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Relive the Stratos jump in breathtaking Lego form

I huddled around my iPad connected to the City of Albuquerque's public Wi-Fi, waiting as Felix Baumgartner started his pre-jump checklist from 24 miles above the earth. The video stuttered, then stopped.

I missed most of the record-setting jump, but I don't feel so bad about it since I found the Lego reenactment. All of the excitement is pretty accurately captured in little plastic detail.… Read more

Baumgartner makes record-setting skydive

Latest update: October 15 at 5:38 a.m. PT

One false start was enough for Felix Baumgartner.

On Sunday, the 43-year-old extreme skydiver ascended to the upper reaches of the atmosphere above Roswell, N.M., in a bid to come racing back down in a supersonic freefall.

At first, Baumgartner's Red Bull Stratos team said that the unofficial top speed of the freefall was 1,137 kilometers per hour, or 706 miles per hour. Later, they raised that to 1,342.8 km/h, or 834.4 mph.

The team's expectation was that 690 mph would be … Read more

No supersonic skydive for Baumgartner tomorrow

Felix Baumgartner will not attempt his stratospheric skydive tomorrow.

Weather conditions continue to be less than ideal for the mission, in which Baumgartner plans to set several records -- most dramatically, becoming the first person ever to fly, or in this case freefall, at supersonic speed without the protection of an aircraft fuselage around him. In making the attempt, if all were to go according to plan, he also would make the highest manned ascent with a balloon (120,000 feet, or just under 23 miles) to get to his jumping-off point, and the longest sustained freefall (an estimated 5 … Read more

Baumgartner's supersonic skydive scrapped for today

Last update: 10:55 a.m. PT.

Felix Baumgartner wants to make history as the first person to achieve supersonic speed in freefall, but that won't happen today.

At about 10:45 a.m. PT, with Baumgartner in his capsule and his balloon just beginning to be inflated, the decision came to abort the mission because of gusting winds.

The liftoff had been scheduled to begin at about 5:30 a.m. PT, but was delayed as the weather conditions at the launch site in Roswell, N.M., failed to cooperate. Tomorrow's weather is apparently not looking favorable, … Read more

ACDSee 15 offers a top photo editing and managing suite with integrated online storage

ACDSee 15 is a full-featured photo editor and manager optimized for home and business users. It shares many features and capabilities with ACD's pro photography applications, including powerful image editing tools that can handle the tasks you need as well as gigabytes of online storage space that you can use to organize and safely store tons of images. You can access your account anywhere, and from any computer or related ACD tool, by simply logging in. But ACDSee 15 is also specifically geared to make it easy to post and share your photos online, create slideshows and CDs, add … Read more

Stay alive in Red Crucible 2

The sequel to Red Crucible, Red Crucible 2, is a free first-person shooter that is available in the Mac App Store. Bringing the battlefield experience to its users in a multiplayer action, Red Crucible is fun, but the limited number of free guns available and the poor graphics affect the overall gaming experience.

Gamers who are already familiar with first-person-shooter games will likely intuitively know which buttons they need to use to start the game. However, the lack of a Help file is a problem for people who are new to first-person shooters. There is no storyline behind the game, … Read more

'The Hobbit': No longer stunted, the films grow into a trilogy

Middle-earth buffs now have something to rejoice about -- Oscar-winning director Peter Jackson announced today that his movie adaptation of "The Hobbit" will be a trilogy rather than the previously announced two-part sequel.

He made the announcement on Facebook, saying that while he was editing the first and second movies in the series, he realized how much of the story was being left out.

"We were really pleased with the way the story was coming together, in particular, the strength of the characters and the cast who have brought them to life," he wrote. "All … Read more

Learn first aid from the Red Cross on your smartphone

Can't live without your smartphone? It just might help save your life or someone else's, one day. The American Red Cross first aid app, available on Android and iOS, has advice on administering first aid and preparing for emergencies.

When you first launch the app, you'll see a large notice asking you to tap on the Emergency tab, if you're facing an emergency situation. Once you tap on the Emergency tab, you'll see a list of emergencies like allergies, choking, and poisoning. Some of the emergency situations will provide a quick list of advice and … Read more

Western Digital ships NAS-specific WD Red hard drive

If you have a network-attached storage (NAS) server, such as the Synology DS 1511+, and are wondering what hard drive you should get for it, here's another easy answer: the WD Red.

Western Digital announced today the new 3.5-inch SATA hard drive that's specifically designed for home and small office NAS systems of up to five drive bays. WD says the WD Red has been tested with "top NAS box manufacturers" and is optimized for power and performance.… Read more